Structure, Function, and Genetics of Lipoprotein (a)

Overview

Journal J Lipid Res

Publisher Elsevier

Specialty Biochemistry

Date 2016 Apr 15

PMID 27074913

Citations 198

Authors

Konrad Schmidt

Asma Noureen

Florian Kronenberg

Gerd Utermann

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Lipoprotein (a) [Lp(a)] has attracted the interest of researchers and physicians due to its intriguing properties, including an intragenic multiallelic copy number variation in the LPA gene and the strong association with coronary heart disease (CHD). This review summarizes present knowledge of the structure, function, and genetics of Lp(a) with emphasis on the molecular and population genetics of the Lp(a)/LPA trait, as well as aspects of genetic epidemiology. It highlights the role of genetics in establishing Lp(a) as a risk factor for CHD, but also discusses uncertainties, controversies, and lack of knowledge on several aspects of the genetic Lp(a) trait, not least its function.

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